Former Rangers player Graham Roberts appears to be convinced that Jermain Defoe will be staying at Ibrox next season.
Despite getting on a bit when he first arrived at Rangers at the age of 36, the former England international has still managed to help Steven Gerrard’s side out by scoring 32 goals in 72 games, even managing to get 7 in 20 this past season.
He finds himself out of contract this summer, but the club are reportedly showing an interest in keeping hold of him next season as they look to push on from their title-winning campaign and take the next step forward under Gerrard.
And speaking on the latest edition of the Record Rangers podcast, Roberts revealed that he had spoken to Defoe about the matter, and based on the conversation he had with him, Roberts seemed pretty confident that the 38-year-old would be a part of the setup for the 2021/22 campaign:
“Having spoken to him the other night, my feeling is that he will be there next season. He says he absolutely loves it; he loves Steven Gerrard. I think Steven Gerrard loves him because, you know, you’ve got a player that’s not going to cause you a problem, he’s going to come off the bench and get you goals.
“So yeah, Jermain, definitely, 100% he’ll be there next season.”
Is Defoe one of the best backup strikers in the world?
Yes
No
TIF Thoughts on Graham Roberts’ comments about Jermain Defoe’s future at Rangers…
With Rangers hoping to compete on multiple fronts again next season ahead of their impending Champions League campaign, they are going to need that strength in depth to help spread the squad out over the course of the season.
And even if Defoe is just needed for 10-15 games a season to offer players rest, provided he can keep up his goal production the way he has, then there’s no reason why he can’t play an important role next season as well.
Hopefully, they will be able to at least negotiate him down to a much more team-friendly salary, though, as he is still reportedly one of the team’s highest earners, and perhaps his wages should reflect his role a bit more accurately next campaign.
In other news: Exclusive: DOF issues update on Ross Wilson’s Rangers target, drops summer exit hint